Genetic Diversity in Establishing Plant Populations

The new research described in this book demonstrates that the interplay of a host of founding conditions can frequently produce profound differences in population expansion rates and maintenance of genetic diversity in contrasting populations that differ, often only to slight degrees, in initial founding conditions. The goals of this book are twofold. First, it serves as a user’s manual for the computer program NEWGARDEN (provided) designed to enable investigations, using computer generated populations, of population growth and genetic variation resulting from user-specified differences in initial founding conditions. Second, the book provides a series of examples of how differences in various founding conditions can result in significant differences in demographic and genetic variation trajectories for ensuing populations.

IntroductionWhat NEWGARDEN DoesAnalyzing Genetic Diversity in Small, Isolated, and Developing PopulationsInputOutput: What NEWGARDEN Tallies, Calculates, and ReportsUsing NEWGARDENFounder Number and Allelic DiversityPopulation Genetics Edge EffectsSpatial Arrangement of FoundersThe Rate of ReproductionTruly Random Mating and Selfing RateDispersal Offspring Dispersal Distance and Pollen Dispersal DistanceThe 50/500 -100 -1000 -5000 Ne Rules, Actual Population Size, and Loss of Diversity to Random DriftDioecyPerennialsActual Data versus NEWGARDEN: American ChestnutCorridorsConclusions and DiscussionBibliography